Austin City Government - Circus of the Insane

[Newdoc 3439]

53 minutes ago, atomheartbevo said:

So yeah, they are shuffling the deck and pretending it's being cut.

So cue scene to city council chambers....

[BabaYaga 15289]

3 hours ago, Armybrat said:

You know that is not going to happen, just as the security for Tarrytown & Pemberton will remain strong. 
But the local gangs, cartels, and bums are celebrating. Of course traffic fatalities will continue to increase, and good luck to the Car wreck victims getting any “justice”. Better direct some of those millions to the city morgue, as it will be busier than normal.

So dumb.  You actually want to make the city safer.  It's not hard.  

1) increase funding
2) Use that increase to improve training, and include mandatory deescalation training. Use that increase to improve pay to attract better candidates, and increase size of the force so officers can take more time off.
3) Reduce the budget for military hardware to offset increased costs.
4) stop doing unjustified no knock raids.
5) Get rid of unions that force departments to keep on bad cops.
6) Create national databases to track bad cops so they can't skip around to get rehired.

Its that simple.

But 'defunding' does nothing but hurt policing efforts and the communities that need the police most.

 

[dcar00 14159]

1 hour ago, atomheartbevo said:

You don't say.

https://www.kxan.com/news/local/austin/mayor-adler-responds-to-city-councils-150m-move-from-apd-budget/

So yeah, they are shuffling the deck and pretending it's being cut.

And the forensics lab should have been moved 3-4 years ago when it was closed for mismanagement/shady shit.

https://www.austinmonitor.com/stories/2017/09/the-implosion-of-austins-crime-lab-a-timeline/

 

what good does delaying 3 cadet classes do?

[BabaYaga 15289]

22 minutes ago, dcar00 said:

what good does delaying 3 cadet classes do?

[atomheartbevo 89630]

33 minutes ago, dcar00 said:

what good does delaying 3 cadet classes do?

Some of it is tied to training.  They are going through all of the videos and procedures they have been using, and are supposedly going to revamp how they train cops.  Maybe they'll start respecting the public a little more.  You know, the folks who pay their fucking salaries.

I wouldn't mind seeing the up their physical fitness standards while they are at it.

[BabaYaga 15289]

2 minutes ago, BurntEyes said:

You forgot fix the fucking POS crime lab.

I would also be for reducing the qty and increased pay with specific mandates related to mental and logical abilities. Higher quality, lower Rambo count.

Using a portion of those funds and folks specifically allocated to community engagement in poor/high crime areas. Appease the shit out of the Bikey vote and make them close by putting them on bikes and being stationed in the hood. Make sure those folks are trained annually in mediation, conflict avoidance and resolution. 

I could go on..

Yep, all of which hinge on additional resources and time

[BabaYaga 15289]

3 minutes ago, atomheartbevo said:

I wouldn't mind seeing the up their physical fitness standards while they are at it.

All their standards.  Every one of them.  They should be training 15-20% of the time.  With a rigid, defined screening pipeline that you can be jettisoned from in a nanosecond.  

[atomheartbevo 89630]

6 minutes ago, BabaYaga said:

All their standards.  Every one of them.  They should be training 15-20% of the time.  With a rigid, defined screening pipeline that you can be jettisoned from in a nanosecond.  

I've wondered if some cops would be so quick to shoot/kill/whatever if they were in better physical shape.  I'm not talking about roided out and getting tired after running 20 steps, I'm talking about like crossfit-style shape.

[Deej 76756]

There would be nothing worse than getting pulled over and then having to listen to a cop talk about cross fit for 20 minutes. 

[BabaYaga 15289]

Just now, atomheartbevo said:

I've wondered if some cops would be so quick to shoot/kill/whatever if they were in better physical shape.  I'm not talking about roided out and getting tired after running 20 steps, I'm talking about like crossfit-style shape.

Talked to many old military/LE friends of mine - most that shoot are scared.  They are almost all suffering from PTSD, and they are asked to do too much.  They don't have the necessary training.  They know they are hated.  Most are depressed and/or looking to retire or take an early leave.  Leaving a massive vacuum that will be filled by less experienced, less trained replacements.  From those that study military history, we all know how well that always goes.

More than the military/SOF guys, who get to control how/where/when they fight and then get to leave.  Not the LE's.  Every car you stop.  Every domestic dispute.  Many live in the very communities, so there is no getting away.  Ever.  I agree on the training.  Especially who you lay hands on someone or they you.  BJJ training at a minimum so they know how to control and what it's like to be in such close proximity with someone who wants to do you harm.  

[BabaYaga 15289]

4 minutes ago, Deej said:

There would be nothing worse than getting pulled over and then having to listen to a cop talk about cross fit for 20 minutes. 

What if they are also vegan.....

[BabaYaga 15289]

7 minutes ago, BurntEyes said:

I get pulled over by a vegan, CrossFit, Bikey cop, I'm going to be pissed when they won't shoot me dead.

[BabaYaga 15289]

1 minute ago, BurntEyes said:

Family member LEO had a legit early MMA future or police. Chose police.

He's never pulled his gun in 25+ years and thinks people that need a gun to resolve a dispute are punks, including cops. He doesn't speak highly of the mental abilities of many new ones either. Lazy is a word he's used in addition to scared.

Hell, he thinks the WOD is fucking idiotic, which is part of the reason why he turned the DEA recruiters down, and thinks shootings should be mostly reserved for crooked cops. 

But I never talk about him here as he's probably just as bad as the rest. 

People that intentionally spend hours a week getting choked tend to be a little more reserved and less prone to histrionics.  There is just a confidence there that cannot be replicated short of time and effort.  

[B00M 6414]

On 7/16/2020 at 8:58 AM, Pasken said:

I hope you guys will support Pooja against Allison Alter and Morgan Witt against Leslie Pool.

 

 

Legit question, how are Pool and Witt ideologically different? Based on their websites, they're the same person but Pool has a record we can scrutinize. If Witt's focus is to improve education opportunity, it seems like her focus will be in East Austin instead of district 7.

[Pasken 1309]

Just now, B00M said:

Legit question, how are Pool and Witt ideologically different? Based on their websites, they're the same person but Pool has a record we can scrutinize. If Witt's focus is to improve education opportunity, it seems like her focus will be in East Austin instead of district 7.

Witt is pushing for more density in housing and Pool constantly fights it.

[B00M 6414]

6 minutes ago, Pasken said:

Witt is pushing for more density in housing and Pool constantly fights it.

So she unsuccessfully opposed the Waterloo Terrace, Elysium Grand, and Laurel Creek apartments (among others?), that will all be finished this year or next, bringing with them a combined ~300 taxpayer subsidized units?

Why does it bother you if she "fights" on behalf of the neighborhoods they encroach upon, if she's so out-voted they get built anyway? Isn't her job to represent the people of her district? 

 

[atomheartbevo 89630]

2 hours ago, BabaYaga said:

People that intentionally spend hours a week getting choked tend to be a little more reserved and less prone to histrionics.  There is just a confidence there that cannot be replicated short of time and effort.  

So you're saying that NowThis would make a fantastic cop?

[atomheartbevo 89630]

On 8/13/2020 at 5:26 PM, BabaYaga said:

Idiotic, symbolic, sleight of hand. They're shuffling the deck and calling it a 'cut' for their idiot local activist mob, who are stupid enough to buy it.

While it's easy to see that they are just shuffling the deck, the fucking media (and social media) is playing this up as Austin turning into Portland or whatever and that Austin is actively firing a bunch of officers or something.  I've had multiple relatives ask me today about it.  The ones from Dallas and Houston, I've told them a short summary and then mentioned that they should probably worry about their own police departments/city management.

[atomheartbevo 89630]

Somebody thinks they have all the solutions

 

[MillerEP 30448]

 

[dcar00 14159]

23 minutes ago, MillerEP said:

 

there has to be way more than 7000 homeless in Austin...still not sure why they just don't tell them they have to go to ZIlker.  Its a huge piece of publicly owned land that isn't near lots of cars or houses.

[Wally Fairway 5541]

1 hour ago, atomheartbevo said:

Somebody thinks they have all the solutions

 

OMG - she might just be the female version of Senator John Blutarsky

[Deej 76756]

2 hours ago, atomheartbevo said:

Somebody thinks they have all the solutions

 

"Citizen's arrest!"

[Texas Jeff 1945]

20 hours ago, B00M said:

Legit question, how are Pool and Witt ideologically different? Based on their websites, they're the same person but Pool has a record we can scrutinize. If Witt's focus is to improve education opportunity, it seems like her focus will be in East Austin instead of district 7.

This is about CodeNext, or changing zoning in the City of Austin.  Adler has seven votes but needs nine.

Before COVID hit, the city was trying to adopt a new zoning plan.  This plan was previously called CodeNext.  During the CodeNext debate, the mayor had around five solid votes for CodeNext, maybe a 1-2 more.  In 2018, Ora Houston and Ellen Troxclair were replaced on the city council with two council members friendly to zoning reform.  CodeNext came back, but it was renamed the Land Development Code Revision.

Throughout 2019, votes for the LDC revision typically passed 7-4, with the same 7 people for and the same 4 against.  The four against were Pool, Alter, Tovo and Kitchen.  They represent central Austin districts, mostly in the middle and west sides of town.  Their districts were going to see a lot of change because of CodeNext.  If this passes, developers will make a lot of money tearing down existing homes in Central Austin and replacing them with smaller condo or apartment like units.  These units might be three homes where one stands today, on a 50 ft lot, or as many as 10 units in a small apartment building in a "transition" zone on one lot.  Reduced parking was also an issue, since some of the denser units required little or no parking. No on-site parking assumes people either go carless or park in the street.  There were changes citywide (at least two homes per lot allowed on many lots, for example).

In the fall of 2019, the plan passed the planning commission and it later passed the first two readings at city council.  Three readings are required to approve it.  State law says that a city considering a zoning change must give the citizens notice of the change and must allow them a way to protest the zoning change.  The protest can be overridden by three-fourths of the city council.  The city knew this but did not follow the law.  They asked a city lawyer for an opinion that stated that since the zoning change was citywide, this state law did not apply.  The lawyer wrote such an opinion.   Many citizens tried to protest anyway, by sending protests to the email address the city provided for LDC comments or mailing the city protest letters.

A group sued the city and won.  The judge said that the planning commission decision was not allowed, because they did not send notices, and the first two votes on the city council reading were not allowed, because they did not allow citizens to protest.  The city decided to appeal the decision, and the appeal is pending.

So, Adler now needs nine votes, not seven, to deny citizens their right to protest changes to zoning and proceed with CodeNext.  Alternatively, he could win the appeal or compromise with the four on the other side.  Or ... he could try to get rid of his opposition and replace them with supporters.

I assume from reading her website, that Witt would be another vote for Adler on CodeNext, giving him eight votes.  If Adler gets to nine, he and city staff can design whatever zoning map they want, pass it, and Austin citizens will have no ability to protest zoning changes.  If he does not get to nine, he will have to wait for the appeal, compromise to get to nine votes, pass the plan and allow citizens to protest, or do something else.  Since he was OK with ignoring the protest law before I suspect he will try to get to nine votes.

So, if you want to force Adler to compromise with the people that represent the districts where a lot of the change is proposed, you should consider voting for Pool.  If you want the zoning change as is ... or maybe even more change ... with no citizen power to protest ... you should take a look at Witt.

 

[B00M 6414]

Impressive recap. I suddenly feel highly motivated to vote.

 

[dcar00 14159]

On 8/13/2020 at 5:26 PM, BabaYaga said:

Idiotic, symbolic, sleight of hand. They're shuffling the deck and calling it a 'cut' for their idiot local activist mob, who are stupid enough to buy it.

I'd be for an actual150M being cut if they'd take similar percentage cuts from the bullshit feel good stupid ass crap they spend money on as well.  the city council is basically a criminal enterprise stealing money.

[Wally Pryor 5261]

1 hour ago, dcar00 said:

I'd be for an actual150M being cut if they'd take similar percentage cuts from the bullshit feel good stupid ass crap they spend money on as well.  the city council is basically a criminal enterprise stealing money.

Were you one of the people that filed the ORR on the ISA building purchases?   In 10 days last summer this tribe of fuckups on our council went from talking about its first homeless shelter on Banister to approving its purchase, with almost no citizen input, at almost 2X of its FMV, until stakeholders in the area said, "Whoa".    And they got lawyers involved. 

Next thing you know Adler and the council said, "We'll pass on Banister.  Let's find something else."  

Shocking. 

 

 

 

Edited August 15, 2020 by Wally Pryor

[atomheartbevo 89630]

6 hours ago, Texas Jeff said:

Reduced parking was also an issue, since some of the denser units required little or no parking. No on-site parking assumes people either go carless or park in the street.

[CleverNickname 1308]

re: CodeNext - I wonder if Trump's pivot to NIMBY helps the pro-CodeNext YIMBY people and paints that Pool, Alter, Tovo and Kitchen quartet as the racist hypocrites we all know they probably are. 

[Armybrat 40826]

Que?

[Armybrat 40826]

The Jumpstart cartoon cops in the AAS are being assigned to Bike patrol.

years ago my cop nephew in Kerrville was assigned to nighttime bike patrol with a fellow cop. Once in a while they’d get a call and have to pedal quickly across town, so nephew & his partner would make loud siren whooping sounds as they zoomed along. Lol

[Biff Tannen 45667]

1 hour ago, BurntEyes said:

Bikes, they will be required to own bikes not cars. It will be part of the zoning agreement. Not sure why you think going without a car in Texas is so funny.

Because Bikes.

[workswithseed 2095]

Ha, this is great.

[Pasken 1309]

2 hours ago, CleverNickname said:

re: CodeNext - I wonder if Trump's pivot to NIMBY helps the pro-CodeNext YIMBY people and paints that Pool, Alter, Tovo and Kitchen quartet as the racist hypocrites we all know they probably are. 

Exactly. Trump said out loud what groups like Community, Not Commodity use code words for. 

[dcar00 14159]

3 hours ago, CleverNickname said:

re: CodeNext - I wonder if Trump's pivot to NIMBY helps the pro-CodeNext YIMBY people and paints that Pool, Alter, Tovo and Kitchen quartet as the racist hypocrites we all know they probably are. 

"we all know they probably are" - way to take a stand...

[B00M 6414]

4 hours ago, CleverNickname said:

re: CodeNext - I wonder if Trump's pivot to NIMBY helps the pro-CodeNext YIMBY people and paints that Pool, Alter, Tovo and Kitchen quartet as the racist hypocrites we all know they probably are. 

Can you just let us know when Adler and the council members you like start paying market rate to live in apartments with mostly subsidized units? Or when they support the building of one that towers over their backyard? Thanks in advance.

[UrbanAchiever 277]

20 minutes ago, B00M said:

Can you just let us know when Adler and the council members you like start paying market rate to live in apartments with mostly subsidized units? Or when they support the building of one that towers over their backyard? Thanks in advance.

Adler lives in the W. He's surrounded by towers.

As for the other question, there are scant examples of those types of rental properties. It's usually the inverse - mostly market rate units with a small percentage of income-restricted units. And it's incorrect to tag them as "subsidized" without knowing the exact financing mechanism that was employed to build them. There are a myriad of them, the most common being a tax credit which is basically private investment in exchange for a dollar for dollar credit against a corporation's federal tax liability.

[dcar00 14159]

12 minutes ago, UrbanAchiever said:

Adler lives in the W. He's surrounded by towers.

As for the other question, there are scant examples of those types of rental properties. It's usually the inverse - mostly market rate units with a small percentage of income-restricted units. And it's incorrect to tag them as "subsidized" without knowing the exact financing mechanism that was employed to build them. There are a myriad of them, the most common being a tax credit which is basically private investment in exchange for a dollar for dollar credit against a corporation's federal tax liability.

Adler is the very definition of limo liberal....

[B00M 6414]

24 minutes ago, UrbanAchiever said:

Adler lives in the W. He's surrounded by towers.

You mean except for that killer view of the river looking over city hall. Replace city hall with a tower of affordable units that blocks that view and watch the NIMBY flow through him...

 

As for the other question, there are scant examples of those types of rental properties. It's usually the inverse - mostly market rate units with a small percentage of income-restricted units.

From what I can find, every complex Pool allegedly opposed, is a "scant" example. 

 

And it's incorrect to tag them as "subsidized" without knowing the exact financing mechanism that was employed to build them. There are a myriad of them, the most common being a tax credit which is basically private investment in exchange for a dollar for dollar credit against a corporation's federal tax liability.

Isn't that just a federal subsidy? 

 

[UrbanAchiever 277]

8 minutes ago, B00M said:

From what I can find, every complex Pool allegedly opposed, is a "scant" example. 

Waterloo Terrace and Laurel Creek are 100% affordable. Elysium Grand is a combo of affordable and market rate. 

[atomheartbevo 89630]

https://www.kxan.com/news/texas/gov-abbott-to-announce-new-police-funding-proposal-at-noon/

Quote

In a news conference on Tuesday, Gov. Greg Abbott expressed his disapproval for the City of Austin’s decision to transition funding out of Austin Police Department — and announced a proposal stating that any Texas cities that defund their police from now on will have their ability to increase property taxes frozen.

I wish Texas was a state that believed in local control.

And Abbott is a fucking embarrassment of a UT grad - it only takes 30 seconds to figure out they aren't "defunding" the cops, they are shuffling some responsibilities and budgets around.

For fuck's sake, after the 2017 scandal, APD should never be allowed to host a forensic's lab.  Ever.  Nearly 2,000 investigations/prosecutions compromised, 10s of millions of taxpayer dollars wasted.

[Longhorn 145]

5 hours ago, atomheartbevo said:

https://www.kxan.com/news/texas/gov-abbott-to-announce-new-police-funding-proposal-at-noon/

I wish Texas was a state that believed in local control.

And Abbott is a fucking embarrassment of a UT grad - it only takes 30 seconds to figure out they aren't "defunding" the cops, they are shuffling some responsibilities and budgets around.

For fuck's sake, after the 2017 scandal, APD should never be allowed to host a forensic's lab.  Ever.  Nearly 2,000 investigations/prosecutions compromised, 10s of millions of taxpayer dollars wasted.

Thank God someone is capping our property taxes. This city is out of control. 

[bluto 4915]

Thank God someone is capping our property taxes. This city is out of control. 

I know kinda tongue in cheek, but I wouldn’t go popping bottles as even if this passes the city taxes in Austin only make up ~20% of your tax bill. And the city rate of .44% is quite a bit lower than most other major Tx cities
Dallas .77
Houston .58
SA .56

Obviously the property values of Austin city are significantly greater.

[Pasken 1309]

Something for you guys to start thinking about. It's possible that there is going to be some radical city charter amendments next spring for Austin voters.

 

Essentially, it would convert Austin's government from a Council/Manager format where the mayor is mostly ceremonial (outside of emergency declarations) and has an equal voice to other council members to a Council/Strong Mayor System where the elected mayor basically runs the city government which is how most large cities work like Houston, Chicago, Philly, NY, San Diego etc. It would also:

-Move the election for Mayor to presidential years because of higher voter turnout starting in 2024

-Add another city council district to keep the number of city council members an odd number since the mayor would not be on the council.

 

I don't know how I would vote on this yet however I do think it would be great to put it on a ballot for voters to decide. The system we have now provides for stability but poor flexibility. A strong mayor system can better reflect a community due to the head of the government being more motivated around issues as oppose to the status quo with city managers like Cronk. 

Edited August 25, 2020 by Pasken

[atomheartbevo 89630]

What would Adler do with this power?

Would the City Council be able to overrule the mayor?

What if (remote possibility) Fitlump gets on the City Council?

 

[Updawg 2266]

We would have never had mark ott in that situation

[Armybrat 40826]

Is the CC unhappy with Cronk?

[bschoolprof 6252]

It's a no from me dog on the strong arm mayor idea.  It seems like a reversion to the old system where the old Austin guard will get their guy/gal in the mayor's seat and he/she can basically run the city how they see fit.  Maintaining the status quo and having the city manager serve at the pleasure of a diverse council that represents the cross-section of austin sounds like a much better system than a overly powerful executive that may only be accountable to a few key constituencies.   We've seen what strengthening the executive has done at the federal level over the last 50 years.  Not a fan.  And I don't really give a shit how most large cities are run.  Most large cities are run very poorly.  

[Deej 76756]

On 8/17/2020 at 9:49 AM, workswithseed said:

Ha, this is great.

Bill Hicks hasn't aged well.

[Bozo_Casanova 26438]

4 hours ago, Pasken said:

Something for you guys to start thinking about. It's possible that there is going to be some radical city charter amendments next spring for Austin voters.

 

Essentially, it would convert Austin's government from a Council/Manager format where the mayor is mostly ceremonial (outside of emergency declarations) and has an equal voice to other council members to a Council/Strong Mayor System where the elected mayor basically runs the city government which is how most large cities work like Houston, Chicago, Philly, NY, San Diego etc. It would also:

-Move the election for Mayor to presidential years because of higher voter turnout starting in 2024

-Add another city council district to keep the number of city council members an odd number since the mayor would not be on the council.

 

I don't know how I would vote on this yet however I do think it would be great to put it on a ballot for voters to decide. The system we have now provides for stability but poor flexibility. A strong mayor system can better reflect a community due to the head of the government being more motivated around issues as oppose to the status quo with city managers like Cronk. 

I keep hearing this stuff from AURA types and I’m a hard pass. I’d far rather have apolitical professional administrators in charge than subject the daily operation of city services to electoral politics in the form of an executive mayor. No thank you.